Linn-Mar’s ‘special’ season ends as Class 3A runners-up

AMES — The Lions had plenty of Luck on their side.

They just needed a bit more.

Seventh-ranked Linn-Mar (17-4) fell to No. 1 Waukee Northwest (15-1-2), 3-2, in the Class 3A girls’ state soccer championship Saturday at Cyclone Sports Complex in Ames.

Junior Aubrey Luck scored both goals for the Lions.

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“Aubrey’s fantastic; she always fights like a dog,” Linn-Mar Coach Hannah Clark said. “She’s the one that goes in and does the dirty work, so for her to get those two goals is unbelievable. She’s been amazing this entire season.”

Luck’s 5th-minute goal put the Lions on the board first.

Shortly after, lightning was spotted and the match went into a 35-minute weather delay at the 31:42 mark.

Out of the break, Waukee Northwest’s Izzy Simonini evened the score with a 15th-minute goal on a well-executed set piece.

“It's kind of tough when you have a lightning delay — you go sit, do your thing for 30 minutes and come back on the field,” Clark said. “For us, it was a time to kind of get mentally checked back in, and then we changed a few things that we saw right off the bat.

“So, it kind of helped in a way, kind of didn't help in a way — but it's part of the game.”

Wolves’ leading scorer Romey Croatt blasted home a free kick with 1:18 left in the first, giving Waukee Northwest a 2-1 heading into intermission.

Luck had an answer.

From 35 yards out, Luck hammered a free kick over the keeper’s fingertips, tying it at 2-all with 26:48 remaining.

“I was thinking, get it in — your team is counting on you,” Luck said. “You have to take every chance you can.”

“She usually gets the assist to Abi (Roberts), but hey, she showed up big today,” Clark said. “The other team, they know who Abi is, so Abi’s getting marked.”

Luck had 12 assists this year, many to Roberts — Linn-Mar’s all-time leading scorer.

Roberts, a North Dakota State commit, ends her high school career with 101 goals — 41 this season, also a Linn-Mar record.

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“I didn’t get many touches on the ball today, but Aubrey really stepped it up when we needed her,” Roberts said. “She’s been fantastic all year, and I know she’ll do amazing next year.”

With 15:33 remaining, Olivia Stapleton lofted a high shot beyond the keeper’s reach for the game-winning goal.

“It was a battle,” Clark said. “Both teams coming into it bruised up, banged up and fought hard. That’s a fantastic team we just faced, and it was a great game.”

The 2025 season was unforgettable for Linn-Mar.

Entering the state quarterfinals, the Lions had never won a state tournament game.

Linn-Mar proceeded to knock out No. 2 West Des Moines Valley, 3-0, in the quarters and No. 3 Ankeny Centennial, 2-1, in the semis.

“I'm just so proud of our team to even make it to this game,” Roberts said. “Our goal coming into the state tournament was to just score one goal, because it hadn't been done in so long. So to win two games and score multiple goals in each was fantastic.”

The Lions also captured the Mississippi Valley Conference with a perfect 6-0 record in division play for the second straight year.

“(This season was) so special,” Luck said. “The fact that we were able to come this far, the first in our school history, it just makes me so proud of our team and our girls.”